Darkness Falls
by Iridescent Hope
Summary: Story Complete. A Fatal Frame-RMX crossover. Cain's granddaughter has some... interesting heritage.
1. Darkness Falls: Prologue

Darkness Falls - Prologue

__

Something was chasing her.

Darkness close around her, blinding her, and it was chasing her. Heavy breathing fell upon the back of her neck, rasping echoed in her ear. She stumbled forward, desperate to get away-

Her foot stepped down on nothing. Shrieking, she raised her arms to cover her face as she fell, hurtling towards whatever lay beneath her. Cold hands reached out for her, touched her, grabbed at her shirt, her hair. Then she was out of reach, falling, falling… 

Sharp, shooting pains violently racked her body as she struggled to keep the gate closed.

Ropes, wrapped around her neck, her wrists, her ankles. Pulling…

Someone shouting her name, over and over again. Shouting to hold on.

A mirror! glowing white. Glowing brighter, brighter! breaking!

The ropes pulling tighter, tighter, more pain, unbearable pain.

A blinding light, something snapping, a gate. Opening. A woman, bound, fading. Laughter. And choking darkness.

'Die.'

She woke. 


	2. Darkness Falls: Chapter 1: 'You Have A G...

Darkness Falls - Chapter One: 'You Have A Granddaughter?'

"Please, Doctor Cain, I need your help."

He couldn't quite place the tone of her voice. Panicked, yes, but calm at the same time… Final. Her tone was final. She was desperate; that was why she was calling. He doubted she would have ever turned to him, but something told him Tony was involved. 

"Kiri, calm down," Cain replied firmly, rubbing his temples. Once again he was glad he had never gotten around to installing the newer 'vid-phones' in place of his old one, being thankful the woman couldn't see his reactions. "What do you need me to do? I can't go down and live with her and I'm not a psychologist. I don't see what-"

"She can't stay here any longer." She cut him off, her tone equally as firm as Cain's. "She can't-"

Something was happening in the background and, as much as he did despise the Vid-phones, Cain was now wishing one was in his possession, just so he could see what was going on. There were muffled voices, a man whom he assumed to be Tony, and another woman's voice. They seemed to be arguing about something; maybe the other woman was the girl she was referring to?

Cain's train of thought was brutally interrupted when Kiri came back to the phone, growling. "She can't stay here any longer Cain. And she hasn't visited you in nearly seven years. She needs somewhere to stay, please, take her…"

+╗  
+╝

"… is the excavation going?"

"Not too well, damnit. The humans all come down with this same goddamned illness. They start screaming and running around terrified till we take 'em back upside… then they don't remember a damned thing, yet refuse to go back down. And now the reploids are starting to complain about doing all the work, or they're starting to show the same symptoms as the humans!"

"This place is cursed."

"That's what you keep on saying."

"That's what's being proved, isn't it?"

"…….."

+╗  
+╝

"Anyone seen Cain lately?"

No one was sure who had asked the question. The room was large and packed with Spotters, Hunters, and Mechanics, both the human and reploid varieties. For all anyone knew it could have just been the question in the back of their minds that no one specifically had voiced, but no one really cared to think too much on the subject of 'who asked what'.

It didn't matter, really. Whoever it was wasn't willing to stand up and take credit for starting the current topic of debate, and no one cared. 

A group of reploids, specifically the reploids named X, Zero, and Alia, hung back in a corner, away from the crowd. A frown crossed Alia's face as she leaned against X, trying to hear what the blue hunter was saying against the din of the crowd.

"-ing something to me about someone coming," X practically had to shout for her to hear, and even then she missed most of what he was saying.

"What?"

"Someone's coming to visit Cain!" Zero bellowed out, causing them both to wince. It really didn't matter the size or the noise level of the crowd he was in; anyone Zero wanted to hear him heard him. A useful ability, yes, and yet one that also caused his friends more ear-aches than they could count.

"I wonder who?" Alia murmured, shaking her head at X's questioning voice. If someone was coming, she should have been told about it. She handled most of the paper work that went through Cain, so that ruled out the possibility of it being a governmental official. The only option left then was-

"Does Cain have any family?"

+╗  
+╝

The small side room in his apartment would have to do, Cain decided. He would have gotten her her own apartment, a one, maybe two roomed one with a bathroom, but from what Tony and Kiri told him about her, it would be dangerous to leave her by herself.

A small bed would have to be brought up; he could do that later. Right now, he needed to remove all the clutter, dust, vacuum. A dresser needed to be brought up too, and with a groan he realized that he would now need to get used to sharing his bathroom. With a female. A sixteen year-old teenage woman.

He was an old man. He shouldn't have to do this.

Setting his face into a determined grimace, he set about his work, moving, vacuuming, and dusting everything in sight. It soon became obvious, though, that he had no clue as to what he was doing. He was a doctor, a scientist, really. He had never needed to clean his apartment, save for the occasional vacuum when the color of the carpet changed. Cain buried himself, almost literally, in his work, and would have been lost for days, had there not been a knock on his door, saving him from death by housework. 

"Oh, Alia, thank god you're here," he greeted the spotter enthusiastically as he opened the door for her, allowing her entrance. "You're probably just the person I need. See-"

"Oh my lord Cain, who died in here?" Pinching her nose, Alia waved her hand in front of her face. "Or to be more precise, what died in here? How often do you clean?"

"Eeh… I haven't really cleaned since I moved in here… ten years ago." She nearly choked hearing that, and she stared at him, disgust evident on her features. 

"That's so _sick_!"

Cain shrugged in response. "We can discuss my cleaning habits some other time Alia. I really need your help right now, and it involves cleaning. My granddaughter's coming to stay with me for awhile, and I need to get my apartment ready for her."

Arching an eyebrow, Alia set to work, improving the state of the tiny complex in less than five minutes. It was only when she was opening a window to allow some fresh air in the place that everything Cain had said finally sunk in.

"Wait… you… you have a granddaughter?"

"Yes." She couldn't help but note the sad tone of his voice when he said that. "Caroline… her father is my son, Tony. When he was 23 he left Japan to go marry his current wife, Kiri Hinasaki. There… hasn't been much communication between us… due to her beliefs, Kiri feels that reploids are Satan's work, as she put it. Caroline came over to Japan to visit me once, nearly ten years ago, and even then Kiri refused to allow her to step foot in Hunter Headquarters." He sighed, shaking his head. "And now Kiri wants me to take her in. I don't understand, though- never mind."

Giving him a questioning look, Alia went back to her work, scrubbing and vacuuming the entire apartment. There's something else about her, she thought. I wonder what it is… though I doubt I'll ever have anything to do with her…


	3. Darkness Falls: Chapter 2: Caroline Hina...

Darkness Falls - Chapter 2: Caroline Hinasaki

She looked like her grandmother. At least, that's what everyone told her. She never had seen a picture of her; she had been afraid of cameras.

Strands of auburn hair fell in front of her eyes, escaping from the small knot she had bound her hair into. With a flick of her gloved hand, she tucked the strand comfortable behind her ear, and stepped out of the car, her booted feet clicking on the asphalt. This is Hunters… it's so big…

"Careful Caroline." Jumping slightly, Caroline whirled around and stared at her mother with wide eyes. The exotic Japanese look of her mother, which she had thought made her look beautiful, scared her right now. Her eyes, her black eyes, seemed to peer into her soul, catching a glimpse of a fleeting doubt she shouldn't have been allowed to see, a hidden, twisting fear that was buried deep to keep from bubbling up. "Careful Caroline," she repeated again after a long pause. "This place is cursed… it would do you well to remember the stories."

All Caroline could do was nod in response.

+╗  
+╝

"Frankly, I'm still amazed he has a granddaughter," Zero said, leaning casually against a wall. Both he and X were waiting outside for the arrival of Caroline. To be precise, X was waiting for her, and Zero was waiting with him, using this as an opportunity to torture his best friend. "I mean… you have to have a kid first to have a grandkid, So unless he adopted, Cain actually got some."

"Zero!" X howled, glaring at the blond. "Really, I don't need that mental image. I really don't." Zero grinned his response.

"What, you don't need to see Cain screwing someone? 'Specially the old, wrinkly Cain we have now? I mean, I would assume his-"

"Just… shut up!"

+╗  
+╝

"Reploids in there. Child murderers." Her mother spat on the ground, an ugly expression marring her lovely face. Uneasy, Caroline would have taken a step or two away from her, but the bags were heavy, and she wasn't sure if she'd have the energy to move away.

"Remember that. They're soulless. I've yet to see one that has a soul. They're all empty inside. 

Just twisted husks of metal. An abomination to nature. It makes me sick to believe that your father is related to the man that is the cause of all of this."

"They don't seem that bad," Caroline said softly, training her chocolate eyes on the asphalt beneath her feet. The scarf wrapped around her neck itched, and it was hot, too. The sun beat down on her from above, making her dizzy and tired…

Her mother snorted. "Of course they don't seem that bad. I suppose it's a good thing you don't understand what I mean." There was a touch of sadness to her voice. "I suppose it's good you can't see what I can… I thought it had gone away… but then-" She stopped, mid sentence, and shook her head. "It doesn't matter. You're only here to make the nightmares stop. You'll tell us the moment they do, right? So we can take you home?"

"Yes Mother."

+╗  
+╝

"Hey, I think that's her." Both reploids ended their argument at the sight of the two women, one old and one young, approaching. The younger one carried two suitcases, one in each hand, and wore knee-high boots and gloves, along with a simple blouse and skirt. Her gaze was trained onto the ground. The elder one was dressed in a simplified kimono, a statement of part of her heritage.

"Hi," X said in almost a nervous tone. Mentally he scowled himself; there was nothing to be nervous about. True, the elder one, her mother he assumed, looked like she was ready to bite his head off, but that was no reason to be scared of her. No, it was more the younger one, Caroline. She looked so sad, it was almost painful-

"Do not touch her." The harsh voice from the older woman interrupted his train of thought. "She is not yours, she is not like you, do not touch her. Take her to her grandfather and leave her alone after that."

Any retort X had to that died on his tongue as Caroline raised her head and looked at them. It was almost like staring at the living embodiment of pain; he couldn't understand this feeling. It hurt; he could feel his chest contracting. What had happened to her?

"Yes ma'am," Zero said. He extended his hand and offered to take the luggage from the girl, but Caroline shook her head and demurred, strands of hair falling down into her face.

+╗  
+╝

I know him, she thought, only slightly surprised. The blond man had seemed almost scared of her mother, but she didn't blame him. Most people were. And her mother liked that.

I know him… I was shown you by her. Why did she want me to meet you? Who are you? The questions filled her mind, but she bit down on her tongue and walked forward, staring at the ground again. A woman had appeared in her dreams a while ago… a beautiful woman with long brown hair. She had shown her this man, and begged her to find him.

But why Iris? Why do you want me to know


	4. Darkness Falls: Chapter 3: Iris

Darkness Falls - Chapter 3: Iris

You're beautiful. I'm sure you know that, though. Wherever you are, I'm sure someone has told you that again. There's no way they couldn't; no way they could miss you.

You're beautiful. And I love you. 

I don't deserve to. Or maybe I do. Maybe it's right that a monster like me should only be allowed to love a dead woman. I would hurt someone too much if they were alive. Maybe that's why I killed you. I hope to god it isn't, but maybe that's what was going on through my insane mind.

She hasn't even been here a day and she reminds me of you. The way you were when you first came. Scared, easily startled. You were like some deer. A beautiful deer. I couldn't take my eyes off of you, though I'm sure that didn't help you. Your first day there, and you were being stalked by the Red Demon, a blood thirsty monster.

But you never felt that way about me. Or if you did, you hid it, and hid it well. Even when I killed your brother, even when I killed you, you never felt that way about me. You still loved me. Even though I don't, and I never will, deserve it. 

Iris, I love you. I hate myself for never being about to say those three words to you. I hate myself for freezing everytime I had the opportunity to, and walking off, or stalling until I had to go. I envy you. You found it so easy to say those words to me. 

Did I hurt you when I never returned the feeling? When you told me you loved me, did it hurt you when I only blushed, smiled, and nodded? Were you crushed that I didn't say: "I love you too?" I tried to. I really did. And I did love you. But I just can't express myself so easily. Even when I try.

Did I hurt you, or were you understanding? Did you understand that it just wasn't my way to be so open about my feelings?

It's killing me, being around her. She's just like you. She doesn't look like you, but she acts like you. And she doesn't even see what she's doing. I hate her.

But I love you.

You're beautiful Iris. 


	5. Darkness Falls: Chapter 4: Scars

Darkness Falls - Chapter 4: Scars 

In the year 2176, it was becoming more and more important for scientists to find curse to diseases like AIDs and cancer. After the population boom in the 2110's, wide-spread disease had wiped out nearly nine-tenths of the world's population, the need for answers increased until it was almost a mad drive in every human now to cure some illness.

That was why Hunters had the equivalent of a miniature rain forest in one room. Exotic plants that were all but extinct now grew there, thriving in their lush home, and provided a wonderful opportunity to see what medical properties each plant possessed. 

It was also the perfect place for Caroline to go and hide from the world. 

She had been there a week now, and still no one knew anything about her. She always wore her gloves and boots, and either a high-necked shirt or a scarf. Today was a turtle-necked T-shirt with shorts and black boots and gloves. Caroline never spoke to anyone, also looked down, and always seemed so sad. 

It was painful and pitiful to watch at the same time. You wanted to laugh at her, laugh at the silly way she always dressed, the way she was so scared of everyone. But at the same time…

It hurt to see her.

She walked carefully through the rows of blooming flowers, gloved hand occasionally reaching out to stroke a flower petal, to imagine what the smooth surface would have felt like on her skin. All the while, her mother's words floated around in the back of her mind, haunting her.

'They're soulless. Child murderers.'

But they seem so nice… It was a hopeless mental battle, in the end. Her mother won, for the simple fact that Caroline was far too _scared_ to ever approach one to talk to them. They scared her, not for what they were, but what they weren't. Her mother thought she wasn't able to see, but she was wrong. She could, and she was right; they were soulless.

A shiver moved down her back, starting at the nape of her neck and ending at the base of her spine, causing her to shake uncontrollably. The petal her hand had been resting on ripped, leaving a small piece lying in her palm. She stared down at it for a moment before breaking into tears. 

+╗  
+╝

"Just what the bloody hell _is_ this place?"

"Beats me. I was just diggin' like boss was a tellin' me. I wasn't goin' around questionin' my orders."

"But… what the bloody hell is this?!"

"Look, just grabbed that damned mirror and let's get on out o' here."

"Yeah, yeah…"

+╗  
+╝

Alia leaned against X as they both watched Caroline walk through the rows of flowers. She didn't know she was being observed; at least they didn't think she did. If she knew, she didn't mind, and had made no movement to acknowledge their existence.

"It's in the middle of summer," Alia murmured, frowning. "Don't you think she would be… hot, wearing that?" Her question was aimed towards the high-necked thick shirt and gloves, something that the girl always wore. 

"It's not the bad inside the base. It's air-conditioned. She could be cold," X responded, but there was a hint of doubt in his voice as he spoke. "Still," he added after a while. "It is odd."

"And not really our place to question. She's not our child, thank god for that. As long as she doesn't do anything harmful, we need to leave her alone." She sighed, a little sad. "She seems so alone and sad. I wish I could help her-"

She was cut off by a scream. Startled, Alia jumped back against X, stepping down hard on his foot. He cursed, shoving her off of him, causing her to lose her balance and nearly fall onto one of the benches covered in floral life. Regaining her balance, she ran towards Caroline, frightened and alarmed. 

+╗  
+╝

It's not fair! she thought, closing her eyes tightly. Crouching down, Caroline gripping her one wrist tightly, almost as if she was trying to stop a blood flow. Except the only thing flowing right now were her tears as she cried for the poor flower. Everything I touch, I destroy. It's not fair!

"Caroline?" 

Alia!

Eyes snapping open, Caroline twisted her head around, trying to find the source of the voice. It _sounded _like Iris, but she only appeared when she was sleeping. She had never heard her when she was awake before. What was going on…?

"Caroline, are you okay?" The woman who had spoken before knelt down beside her and placed her hand on Caroline's shoulder. Looking up at her, Caroline briefly made a mental description of her in her mind. Shoulder-length blond hair, ice-blue eyes… 

There was something funny about her eyes. She couldn't place it.

Nodding, Caroline looked down, sighing slightly. "I'm… I'm fine. I'm sorry I worried you." 

The woman made no response. For a moment, Caroline thought that she had imagined the entire thing, that her mind had created it to calm her down when she heard heavy footsteps running towards them. Looking up again, she saw one of the two men that had helped her when she had first arrived here. X, if she remembered correctly. 

He had funny eyes too. Come to think of it, so did the other one, Zero. Iris did too. Why?

"Alia, Caroline… what happened?" The funny look in his eyes faded as worry took its place. Ashamed and embarrassed, Caroline looked down, refusing to say anything. They wouldn't understand; how could they? She didn't even understand most of the time.

"Caroline?" The woman, Alia, gently shook her, concern evident in her voice. "I know your mother doesn't want us near you, and if that's bothering you, we'll leave, but if something's wrong, please-"

"Nothing's wrong," Caroline blurted out, shrugged Alia's arm off of her shoulder. "Nothing. That can be fixed, anyways. I'm just so clumsy, so stupid, Goddamnit. I don't even know why anymore… but I can't. Change, I mean. It won't stop. Not even here. I'm just learning to hide it better, so no one can see. If they did, then-" She stopped, horrified. "I mean… I mean…"

"Why do you wear those gloves?" An innocent enough question. And, more importantly, a change in subject. They thought. Everyone would think that. No one really knew the truth, and those that every found out had a nasty habit of soon disappearing… only her parents weren't here now, so what could they do? 

Standing up, Caroline looked up at the ceiling, taking in a deep breath and savoring the scent of the flowers. "I wear them because I was told to. Because I need to. No one would want me to take them off, trust me."

"Oh, come on. You can trust us." It was X that spoke this time, not Alia. And, when she looked over at him, and saw his funny eyes again, Caroline knew it was true. She could trust him. He and Alia and Zero and Iris; they were all different and yet, all the same. Something linked them together but for the life of her, she couldn't figure out what. 

He smiled slightly, causing her to smile back. Blushing, she looked down at her hands, and sighed. "You're going to regret this." With that, she grabbed hold of the fingers of her left-hand gloved and yanked, ripping it off.

+╗  
+╝

"Hey, come here for a moment."

"Jesus, will you stop site seeing and just help me! For a stupid mirror, this thing sure is stuck in place. I can't move it… what are you doing?"

"Look, between those rocks. Doesn't it kinda look like a gate?"

"Yeah, but-"

"I could've sworn I saw a woman tied between them."

"… lay off the alcohol, will ya?"

+╗  
+╝

Alia gasped and gripped X's arm tightly, fighting back the urge to vomit. She really wasn't sure what she had expected, normal hands, maybe? Certainly not what she saw…

Caroline's _hand_ was normal enough. That wasn't what she was trying to hide. 

Her wrist was nothing more than a mass of black, bleeding skin, a horrible wound that had yet to heal. Rope burns marred her arm an inch or two past her wrist, ripped open and oozing a clear liquid in some parts. The entire mass looked incredibly painful.

"Caroline… how?" X asked, staring at her. "Why?"

"… my dreams…"


	6. Darkness Falls: Chapter 5: Dreams

Darkness Falls - Chapter 5: Dreams

****

"I don't do this to myself; I swear. It happens in my dreams."

Glancing over at Cain, X shook his head, sighing. The five of them, X, Alia, Cain, Caroline, and Zero, were seated in Alia's apartment, a nervous, uneasy silence falling over all of them. Except maybe Zero… he hadn't seemed concerned with what had happened to Caroline. More like he was angry. At her.

"If you didn't do it," X said finally after a long pause. "If you didn't, who did?"

"No one. My dreams."

Zero sneered at her, snapping. "Just how stupid do you think we are? Dreams are nothing more than the over-active human imagination. They don't cause wounds to appear on someone's body. Why the hell did you do that to yourself?"

"Zero!" Glaring at him, X unconsciously clenched his fist, a low growl building in the back of his throat. "If you're not going to help us, then either leave or shut up." Alia placed her hand on his shoulder, but he ignored her. Zero had no right to be acting this way towards Caroline. She was scared, obviously, and he was only making it worse. 

"Huh." Crossing his arms and leaning back against the wall, Zero scowled but said nothing. 

"Caroline-"

Everyone turned their attention to Cain as he began to speak.

"Caroline… you claim that you didn't do this. That no one did it to you. I'm not saying that I don't believe you but…" He hesitating, unsure of what to say next. "But… I don't how that could happen… could you… explain?"

+╗

╚╝

They wouldn't understand, even if he tried to explain it to them. She had no right to be here, no right to hold their attention. She was nothing more than some stupid girl trying to get attention. Worse yet, she was tainting _her _name. She was ruining her name. When he saw her, he saw the other, and it was becoming harder to tell them about. 

She had no right to be doing this. No right to do that. No right at all…

+╗

╚╝

"Ex… plain?" Caroline bit down on the inside of her lip. Explain. How can you explain something you don't even understand?

"It's… I can't explain. Iris would be able to do a better job-"

There was a collective gasp, or maybe a hiss, in the room when she said that. She ignored them.

"-but I'll try…

"She's told me that it's because of who I am. And because of who my family is. I have these dreams that I'm in an old house. And I'm running through it, but something's chasing me. And it's dark, so I can't see where I'm going. And then I'm falling. And whatever was chasing me tries to grab me, but can't, and I just fall some more.

"Then, I'm no longer myself. I'm this woman… Iris has told me that her name is Kirie. And that my mother was named after her. But I don't understand; something to do with a Himuro legend. Whenever I ask her about it, she just smiles and says it's not time for me to know. But I'm this woman, and I'm tied in front of this gate. And this man is shouting out 'Kirie, Kirie' over and over again, but it's hard to hear him."

Caroline paused for a moment, trying to remember what else happened. It was hard, harder than she would've ever thought, to explain what happened in her dreams. They never made any sense, though Iris insisted that there was meaning, and that it was important for her to remember. And to never tell anyone, unless she trusted them.

Iris had the funny eyes, and she trusted her. So it made sense for her to trust them. And Iris told her that she should trust Zero, even if she felt like she couldn't. 

"… and is that the end of your dream?"

Looking up, Caroline stared straight into Alia's eyes, shaking her head. "No…

"I'm then me again. And there are these ropes, wrapped around my wrists, ankles, and my neck. And there's this horrible pulling sensation, and the ropes are rubbing against my skin, and it hurts and it feels like I'm being pulled apart. Only I can't really scream. And there's this round mirror that's glowing so bright, it hurts to look at it. Only something dark touches it and it shatters. And Iris tells me that I need to remember that, and that I need to pieces, only I don't get that. And then I see Kirie, but she's disappearing, and there's a gate behind her. And it's opening. And then… I don't wake up. But it ends. And Iris is always there."

+╗

╚╝

"Finally, the damn thing is out. Can we go-"

His voice was cut off. There was a horrible shattering, cracking noise. And then a pain, burning pain throughout his entire body. And a laughing…

"Malice… is free…"

+╗

╚╝

Alia didn't know what to do. For one of the first times in the Spotter's life, she was at a lose for both ideas and words. Those dreams she described could easily be passed off as a mechanism used to hide Caroline's self-infliction tendencies, or she could even be at the point where she truly believe they were causing them. But she kept on mentioning an 'Iris', and even if they weren't the same, the fact that Iris had just died…

She glanced over at Zero to see what his reaction was. Nothing. No emotion showing on his, no fist clenching, nothing. Which meant he was struggling not to fly across the room and strangle the girl.

"Caroline…" Someone needed to ask her. Someone needed to end the silence. It was started to gnaw around the edges of her mind, bouncing her thoughts around. Alia shook her head. "Who is Iris?"

"I don't know," Caroline responded, slightly embarrassed. "She said that she didn't want to be dead, but she needed to be, and she understood that now. And she has brown hair… long brown hair… and she told me that I needed to trust Zero."

Several things clicked in Alia's mind at once. One was that, while it still didn't mean that the Iris she was referring to was their Iris, necessarily, her description did fit her. Another was that, if something didn't happen to stop him, Zero would try to strangle Caroline for what she had said. 

Thankfully, something did happen to stop him. Unfortunately, it was something that no one really wanted to happen.

Iris appeared. 


	7. Darkness Falls: Chapter 6: Legend

Darkness Falls - Chapter 6: Legend

****

There's a legend. The Himuro Mansion legend.

They say, hundreds of years ago, the Himuro family lived in a mansion, a mansion that was located over the Hell Gate, the physically portal into hell. The family made it their duty to keep the Gate shut, and in doing this they created the practice of the Rope Shrine Maiden.

A girl would be chosen on the 26th of the 11th month, a girl older than 7 years, 9 months, and 25 days. On the day she was chosen, her mother would be taken and sacrificed through the Blinding Ritual, sacrificed in order to start the maiden's separation from the world. 

3,669 days later, on the 13th day of the 12th month, the maiden would be sent to purify herself. When she was done, the Strangling Ritual would begin. Tying a rope to the maiden's neck, wrists, and ankles, she would be pulled apart to provide power to the ropes. The ropes would then be used to keep the Gate shut, as the spirit of the maiden would stay with them, keeping the Calamity from happening, holding Malice back.

Until the maiden Kirie. 

Kirie fell in love. She grew attached to the outside world. When the ritual was performed upon her, and when her ropes were used to keep the Gate shut, they failed, snapping, and Malice was set free. The Holy Mirror, set to guard the gate as well, shattered. 

Kirie's spirit was trapped in the mansion, and over time she grew angry and spiteful, mad at the world that had done this to her. A small part of her, however, wished that she had succeeded in her duty, that she had closed the gate. Slowly, over time, she split into two beings. 

Years afterwards, a family moved into the mansion. They came there because the mother and wife was a sickly woman, and the mountain air was thought to do her good. The child, a little girl named Mikoto, took to the mansion and the woods surrounding it, and soon made friends with the local children. The father soon began absorbed in searching out the history of the mansion.

Mikoto was soon given a camera by one of the children, a young girl wearing a white kimono. A few days later, both she and the other children disappeared.

The mother was frantic. After searching the mansion thoroughly, she came across the camera. Soon after, she hung herself. The husband disappeared a few hours later. When Mikoto was found, she was sent to live with a friend of her father's, Mr. Hinasaki. 

Years later, her grandson came to the mansion, searching for someone. When he didn't return for two weeks, his sister, Mikoto's granddaughter, followed him. Three days later, she came back out with only his broken camera.

The Gate had been sealed, and the mirror had been restored. 

Her granddaughter then moved to the United States. Marrying, she named her only child, a daughter, Kiri, after Kirie. 

The Himuro mansion was torn down. In its place, Hunters was built.

The camera pieces were lost. 


	8. Darkness Falls: Chapter 7: Calamity

Darkness Falls - Chapter 7: Calamity 

"Iris?!" Eyes widening, Zero stood there, dumbfounded. She was standing there, in front of him, just as he remembered her. Except… she seemed… different. Scared, worried… 

Different.

"Zero." She nodded, her brown hair slipping over her shoulder. She was different; he could see that now. Her dress was torn in several places, and dirt was smudged on her face, adding to the worry, the fear. Something was wrong. Something she didn't want to tell him.

"Zero… X, Alia, Cain… Caroline." Iris took a step forward, a horrible strangled noise coming from the back of her throat. "I tried to stop them… but I couldn't… it's coming…" 

"What's coming Iris? What? Is it, is this-"

He wanted to tell her to shut up; it wasn't fair. Iris was here for _him_, not for her. She had no right to interfere, no right to talk to her. She didn't know Iris! She didn't! Angry, Zero clenched his fist, grinding his teeth together. No right at all…

_Yes. She deserves to die, doesn't she? She's taking Iris away from you, again. You should stop her Zero. Stop her before Iris is gone, for a second time._

A voice was talking to him now. But that didn't matter… it was right. She was taking Iris away from her. And she did deserve to die.

+╗  
+╝

Iris was dead. Iris was no longer alive. Iris was standing right in front of her. 

Feeling more than just slightly confused, Alia stared at Iris, the illusion of Iris. She was babbling on about something… about not being able to stop something, about someone coming… she didn't understand…

"Caroline, you have to get them out of here! They're different; they… they won't just be _killed_, they'll be _taken_… The legend that your mother told you. Remember the legend!"

It was impossible to believe. It was impossible to be happening. Your friends do not just randomly come back from the dead and start yelling odd things like that to the girl you were trying to take care of. It just didn't happen. There was something seriously wrong here.

_Yes there is, little girl. And you're not going to interfere with this. You're going to die with the rest of them, and I'm going to claim your soul. I'm going to claim it for my own. You're mine, little girl!_

Alia would have screamed. She could feel it building up in the back of her throat, one of those ear-splitting ones that the heroines in bad horror movies always seemed to make. Except there was something choking her, something cutting off her air, something making it hard to breathe…

+╗  
+╝

Nothing was making sense anymore. He could tell that, just by the fact that _Iris_ was standing in front of them, looking real and alive. If you just ignored the fact that she was slightly transparent, you would have thought that she really had returned from the grave. 

But, how can you really ignore the fact that you can see through someone? X was trying, but so far, he was failing. 

He sensed that there was something terribly wrong in the room, almost like there was something there that shouldn't have been. The air felt thick and tasted almost musty, stale. Old air. But why would there be a flavor like that hanging around? And next to him, he noticed, vaguely, that Alia was trying to scream. And Zero… Zero looked like he was ready to kill something…

_Yes, he does, doesn't he? _A voice cackled merrily in his mind. _He's going to serve my purpose better than you and that little girl combined could. Frankly, I'm not even sure if that girl is good for _anything_… females tend to be weak and crumble easily._

Except for Miku.

Anger flared through him. Not an emotion, more like an actual tangible substance. It hurt, caused an intense ringing in his ears, and generally didn't feel all too good. But it subsided after a moment. And a cloudy feeling filled his mind, making it hard to concentrate on anything…

+╗  
+╝

She could see her influence touch everyone in the room. Caroline shrank back into her chair, staring at her. Malice. Alia was screaming, screaming desperately with nothing coming out, X was unconsciously, and Zero…

Zero scared her more than anyone else. He wanted to _kill_. Malice wanted people, and wanted their souls, but never did she, he, it… never did Malice try to kill just for pleasure. The feeling that was radiating from him was frightening.

Cain was dead. He was killed the moment she had entered the room.

Iris could feel her influence growing weaker by the moment. The force that Malice was giving off was draining her, trying to pull her in, like sh-, like it was doing with all these others. Fighting it off, she placed a hand lightly on Caroline's shoulder, pulling her out of her horrified stupor. "We have to leave! Before she can get to you!"

+╗  
+╝

The feeling of Iris touching her arm was all the encouragement the Caroline needed to get moving. As much as she loved the kind ghost-girl, the feeling of a spirit was enough to give you nightmares.

There was another presence in the room. She could see it, barely, but she could more feel it. A think, heavy, foreboding feeling. Deadly, even. Just breathing the air felt dangerous, like she might accidentally breath in part of it, choking and killing her. But of course, that was silly. How could that happen? Air couldn't just kill you.

But things in the air could.

Disturbed by these thoughts, Caroline followed Iris blindly through the halls, only faintly realizing that the others in the room were still there, that the others hadn't moved at all. Her grandfather had… died… 

The warm sun beat down on her, causing her to blink and stare up at the sun. She was outside. Iris had taken her outside. The wounds on her wrists, neck, and ankles began to throb terribly, causing her to hiss in momentary pain.

Iris tapped her on the shoulder and gestured for her to turn around. Complying, she gasped when she saw what was left of the Hunters' Headquarters.

Nothing. 


	9. Darkness Falls: Chapter 8: Camera

Darkness Falls - Chapter Eight: Camera

That wasn't quite true. There still _was_ something there, it just…

Wasn't Hunter Headquarters. Or, at least, it was, but it was changed. It looked dilapidated, like a hundred-year-old building that should have been torn down long ago. The sky seemed to darken above, a heavy feeling filling the air.

"So… it has begun."

Whirling around, Caroline stared at Iris, confusion evident on her face. "What are you talking about? What just happened in there? What… what's happening to the building?"

"Slow down, slow down," Iris remarked in a distant tone, her gaze going past Caroline and landing on the building. "I can't answer all your questions. What am I talking about? The Himuro Mansion legend. What happened? Malice was let loose. The Calamity is starting. What's happening? I have no clue."

For a moment, Caroline said nothing, her mind trying to comprehend what she had just heard. Then: "The Himuro Mansion legend? You mean, the one about grandma and the haunted mansion with the camera? What does that have to do with anything?"

"Everything Caroline. Everything." Looking back at her, she could see the pain in Iris' eyes. "Your grandmother locked Malice back away, and then left. The camera that she had used to stop Malice was broken. And now she, he, it, Malice is back. Don't you get this? Malice is a soul eater. She killed your grandfather. She's trying to kill X, Alia, and Zero. Don't you understand?!"

Caroline took a step back from Iris, slightly afraid of the raging spirit. Anger was literally seeping from her, causing a sick, nauseated feeling to wash over her. "Iris… I'm sorry…" Covering her mouth with her hand, she retched, her body trying to force the contents of her stomach up and out. "Iris, please-"

She stopped, staring at her wrist. And then did vomit.

The marks, the black, oozing rope marks on her wrists had changed. Fresh red blood began to trickle down, running down her arms and down her hands, running down her neck. Sharp, shooting pains racked her entire body. It hurt. It _hurt_. Something was trying to pull her apart, just like in her dreams. 

"…-ine, Caroline! Please, snap out of it! Look at me, damnit! Caroline!"

Startled, she looked up and saw Iris right in front of her, hands on her shoulders, shaking her. The cold, prickling feeling that she got whenever Iris touched her ran up and down her spin, like millions of tiny fingers touching her. Shuddering, she pulled away and looked down at her wrists again. 

They were back to normal. Unchanged. There was no blood, no fresh marks, no pain of being pulled apart. 

"What's happening to me?" she asked, her voice far calmer than what she expected. Something was messing with her mind; she should be hysterical. Instead, she was acting like she was an everyday occurrence. Of course, people always hallucinated that their body was being pulled apart! That was perfectly normal!

"You need to stop this. Only you can. Caroline, please, listen to me. Take this-" Iris shoved something into her hands. "Take this. Stop Malice. Only you can. You can save them, too. Not your grandfather; he's already dead. But the others. You can save them!"

Confused once more, Caroline examined the small object she held. It was a camera. An old, antiquated camera. Something glimmered inside of it and, curious, she tried to pry the back off of it.

"Don't do that!" Blinking, she stared at Iris.

"Why not?"

"… there's something in there…" Sighing, Iris shook her head. "Caroline, please, save them. The camera, it'll help you. Save them!"


	10. Darkness Falls: Chapter 9: Samurai

Darkness Falls - Chapter Nine: Samurai

****

Everything began to change as soon as she entered the building. The hallways, originally made of a marble-like metal, warped and twisted, changing in front of her eyes to wood. Hallways of wood with ropes hanging from the ceiling. Green mist clouded her site, forcing her to walk slowly, testing the ground carefully with each step. The surroundings seemed all too familiar from her dream; she didn't want to go plunging through the floor.

_STUPID GIRL! LEAVE HERE AT ONCE!_

Whether someone was shouting at her, or whether she was hearing voices in her mind, Caroline couldn't tell. Whatever is was, though, caused a searing pain to shoot through her head, causing her to cry out and fall to her knees, clutching her head.

I can't leave, she thought, gritting her teeth. The pain wouldn't subside. I can't! Iris asked me to come here, and she's right: X, Alia, and Zero _are_ still alive. I can't just let them die. They're different; even my mother could see that, though she didn't want to admit it. They're different. And they don't deserve to die. I don't care if I have to go through Hell to save them, I'm going to! 

_You better be willing to go through with that…_ The voice came again, only this time softer, and afterwards the pain was gone. Pulling herself to her feet, Caroline sighed, rubbing the back of her neck. 

"Here!"

The voice of a young girl startled her. Looking around, she saw nothing, no child, no source of the sound. "I'm imagining things," she murmured to herself. "I'm slowly going mad. After all, I am doing the bidding of a dead woman."

"No, please, in here!" 

This time she saw the little girl. She was short, maybe 5, 5 foot 3, with black hair that fell down to her waist. Caroline guessed that she was roughly nine or ten.

Or, at least she was when she died.

The little girl was transparent. Swallowing hard, she forced herself not to vomit, and slowly walked towards the expectant girl, arm over her face to shield it from any falling debris or attack. I wish oh I wish I had a flashlight, she thought. Why was I so stupid as to come in here without one?

"He's in here." The little girl stared up at her, never blinking.

"Who?" Caroline asked, lowering her arm. She didn't seem dangerous…

"The man who tried to save my doggy. He failed… but he felt so bad afterwards. He was nice to me. I died later though. But I want to help him. Please? Will you help him?"

She didn't know exactly who she was talking about, but judging by the fact that the girl called him a 'nice man', she had a hunch that it was X, and not Zero. "All right," she said, nodding. "I'll try and help him… where is he?"

"The next room."

"Okay." Feeling her mouth suddenly go dry, Caroline licked her lips. "Okay," she repeated, not at all happy with her decision. 

+╗  
+╝

_She's coming_.

The words pounded into his mind, causing him to groan. His entire body ached horribly; his wrists burned from the wires? ropes? holding him up, and his shoulders felt like they were about to, if they weren't already, dislocate themselves.

_Don't worry. Soon, you won't be able to feel a thing._

Somehow, that didn't do much to comfort him.

+╗  
+╝

"Hello?" The room was large, she could tell that much. Probably a meeting hall or something like that, she thought, blinking. Her voice echoed throughout the confines, coming back at her with a mournful, hallow sound.

She shivered. Something didn't seem right here. Never mind the fact that everyone in Hunters was now dead, and that for all she knew there were dead bodies laying all around her, grinning and ready to grab her as soon as she made a wrong move. Never mind that. There was just something _wrong_ here.

"You've come for him, I see."

It was that voice again, only this time it was different. Before, she couldn't tell where it was coming from, couldn't tell if it was male or female. Only now she could. This was a woman talking to her. And the woman was over there. Frowning, Caroline slowly picked her way towards the source of the voice.

And stopped.

And stared.

There was X. X was hanging from the ceiling. Ropes were wrapped around his wrists, suspending him, and his head lolled about his shoulders. Worse yet, even in the pale light, she could see the thin trickle of blood that slid down his check. Something had attacked him earlier. 

"Do you like it?" The woman. She was standing under him, smiling. Squinting, Caroline could just barely make out of her outline, but everytime she thought she knew what she looked like, the woman changed. "You should recognize it. Or has Miku neglected to inform her granddaughter of everything?"

"You're Malice, aren't you?" She surprised herself, ignoring the woman's questions. "I was told about you… what have you done to X?"

"What have _I_ done? Nothing… Except hang him from the ceiling which, if he were conscious, wouldn't really even have any effect on him. However… Samurai was having some fun with him. And I suppose if you want to get X back, you'd have to fight Samurai." Malice was grinning, elongated fangs poking over her bottom lip.

"Who is-" Something slammed into her side. Crying out, Caroline fell, camera flying and skidding across the ground, coming to a rest several feet away. With a groan, she pulled herself to her feet and looked around to see her attacker.

There, standing off in a corner, was a man… Samurai, Malice had called him. He looks the part, she thought, recognizing his clothing as the armor the ancient warriors would wear. In both hands he held a Katana: A long, thin sword.

He was also dead.

"Holy sweet mother of God, what the hell am I supposed to do to fight this thing?!" There was no response to Caroline's question, save for Malice's laugh. Grinning, Samurai leaned forward. And charged at her. 

Jumping to the side, Caroline landed wrong, her ankle collapsing underneath her, and slammed into the floor once more. Crying out, she instinctively curled herself up into the fetal position, waiting for it all to end. I was stupid to think I could do this. How am I supposed to fight a bunch of ghosts?! It's not possible!

… but the camera…

Eyes snapping open, she stared at the camera, lying now only a foot away. Something told her that she had mere seconds to grab it, to use it, to… to do whatever it was that she needed to with it. Samurai was coming back, and this time he wouldn't miss…

Propping herself up on her arms and shoving herself forward, Caroline grabbed the antique, rolling over onto her back and bringing the viewfinder up. I pray this works…I pray this works… not even bothering to check the picture, she pressed down on the shutter. 

A bright flash of light filled the room. With a howl, Samurai fell back, falling to his knees and clutching is head, screaming his pain. Scrambling to her feet, Caroline snapped another picture, watching in amazement as Samurai was not only stopped, he was beaten. With a loud 'pop' he disappeared, leaving behind a small, glowing blue light.

"Huh." Malice frowned, shaking her head. "So you've gotten one back… I doubt you'll get the other two."

She was gone.

Caroline stood still for a moment, too shocked to really do anything. The camera… it was just like in the legend. It could fight ghosts. And Malice was back… the legend… the ropes. Rope hallway… there was something she was missing…

"Please, help him!"

The cry brought her out of her thoughts along with the loud snapping sound. Turning around, she saw the ropes that were holding X up break, sending the blue hunter falling to the ground, legs crumpling under him and landing in an undignified heap.

"X!" Oh my god he's dead he's dead after I did all of that he's dead… Running over to him, she tripped and slid, wincing. "Goddamnit…"

"He's hurt. Badly. Can't you help him?"

It was the little girl again, only this time she was kneeling next to X, her hand resting on his head. There seemed to be something wrong with him, however, other than the fact that he was simply unconscious. 

He was semi-transparent, almost like the little girl. Looking up, Caroline could see him still hanging there, only it wasn't him. It was his spirit, trapped. "Oh god…"

"He trapped. He's hurt. If he can't come back together soon, he's going to die." The girl spoke with a calm, matter of fact voice, and then sighed, resigned to some sort of fate. "I can't let him die."

"But what can you do?" Caroline asked, confused. "What can I do?"

"Nothing, but…" Once again she sighed, frowning. "But I can save him."

"How?"

"By killing myself."


	11. Darkness Falls: Chapter 10: Past

Darkness Falls - Chapter 10: Past

Caroline stared at the little girl, shocked. "_Kill _yourself? Firstly, you're already dead, so how can you kill yourself? Secondly… why would you want to?"

The little girl smiled sadly at her. "How can I? By giving up my soul and my spirit to him, so that his soul could heal. Why?" She sighed, bowing her head. Strands of black hair fell forward, obscuring her face. "Because of what he did."

"What did he do?" Caroline asked, curious. The little girl's hand was growing fainter by the second. "And what are you doing?"

"Giving him my spirit." She looked up, blinking. "My name is Tanya…

"A maverick attacked my home one day. And killed my doggy. It was… this… clown-type reploid, I think. It wasn't _made_ maverick, it had gone maverick. 

"X came that day, and fought the maverick. He tried to save my doggy, but he failed. I wasn't mad at him, but I was sad, and started crying. He came to me and comforted me… he tried to help me anyway that he could. It didn't bring my doggy back, but it did help.

"Because of that, I want to help him." The girl, Tanya's, voice trailed off as she brought her hand up. Or what was left of it. By now it was so transparent that her fingers weren't even visible. "Besides, I'm just a spirit caught under Malice's influence. If I stay here too long, I'll become evil. Like Samurai was. 

"Tanya… isn't there something else that can be done? That I can do?" Tanya shook her head.

"I'm sorry Caroline, but there's nothing that you can do to help him. What you can do is prevent this from happening to anyone else." Caroline looked at her, questioningly. "Alia and Zero are still in here. If you don't save them, they'll be lost under the influence of Malice. Please, help them!"

Caroline nodded. "I'll help them Tanya. I'll help them in any way that I can." The younger girl smiled, nodding.

"Thank you." With that, she closed her eyes, fading away.

For a moment, Caroline crouched there in the darkness, staring at nothing. Something began to sting in the corner of her eyes and, wiping it away, she bit her lower lip. _That girl sacrificed herself…_

There was a groan. Startled, she shoved herself back. X's body stirred, then sat up. 

"Where am I?" he asked, confused. "And why does my head hurt so much?"


	12. Darkness Falls: Chapter 11: Lovelorn Lov...

Darkness Falls - Chapter 11: Lovelorn Lovers Lost Part One

****

Caroline sighed, holding her head in her hands. "Why me?" she groaned, forcing herself to stand. The muscles in her legs, bruised from the falls she had taken before, protested, and dull aches danced up and down her legs. She took no notice, however, and stared down at the confused blue hunter. 

"Caroline, where are we? How did we get here? And… just… what's going on?" X shook his head, a thick cloud of dust blooming around his head. "And just what the hell is going on?!"

"I think you already asked that," she replied dryly, holding a hand out to help him up. He grasped it and pulled himself up, nearly pulling her down in the process.

"I _know_ that," he snapped, crossing his arms. "But I'm in the middle of some… decrepit, old… house. I wake up with a horrible headache. I can't remember how I got here, I don't know where Cain, Alia, or Zero are, I remember Iris' dead body or ghost or whatever you want to call it appearing before me, I'm covered in dust and… just what are you doing?"

Caroline was staring at him, a small smile playing across her lips. "Nothing," she informed him, shaking her head. "I just wanted to see how long you could go with a single sentence."

X blinked, unsure of how to respond to that. "I… see… now, can you _please _explain some things to me?"

+╗  
+╝

It sighed, draping itself around everything like an all-too-friendly cat. A small, mewing noise came from it as it slide soundlessly over the floor, coming to rest just in front of the feet of a young lady.

Alia stared sightlessly forward, a dazed expression on her face. Her mouth was open slightly, adding to the effect. With another mew, the thing wrapped itself around her legs, pulling itself up and curling up on her lap. Her arms, which had been carelessly lying on her lap, came up and rested on the armrests. 

_I was wrong about you_, Malice mused, watching with interest. _You proved to be more than just a weak littler girl…_

This shall prove very_ interesting._

+╗  
+╝

"… do you understand now?"

X shrugged, making a noncommittal answer. "I don't get it. You say that something known as Malice, a force that your grandmother fought and resealed about… 50 years ago with the help of the spirit of a Rope Shrine Maiden, the very one who kinda caused all of that… and that the mansion was torn down, with Hunters built in its place… and that, somehow, Malice was set free again? And that Iris came back to warn us all? And that Malice has already killed Cain?"

The girl nodded, strands of hair falling forward into her face. With a scowl, she brushed that back. "Exactly… but you don't have to act so disbelieving about it."

He raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me, but how would you act if someone told you that your girlfriend was abducted by ghosts from that past that hates you because your grandmother attacked it?"

"… girlfriend?"

+╗  
+╝

Malice stirred, its interest caught. _What's this? This man… he has feelings for this girl?_

Alia shifted underneath it, groaning. Her eyes fluttered ever so slightly, but beyond that she made no movement.

_You're more than useful. If only I had realized this before…_

+╗  
+╝

Shaking her head, Caroline lead the way through the hallways, darting between the ropes. "X, you're just going to have to believe me if you want to save your 'girlfriend," she teased, grinning. X blushed, glaring at her.

"Shut up. That was just a slip of the tongue."

"If it was, then why are you blushing so much?"

He shut up, sighing. She gave him one last triumphant smirk before turning her attention back to where she was going. "Now, where to go from here…"

_Little girl, I have her. If you come here, you could possibly save her…_ Caroline's head snapped up, eyes blazing. "You bitch… c'mon X, she's this way!" Without even bothering to wait to see if he was following, she ran at full speed, nimbly jumping over fallen pieces of timber and holes in the rotting wooden floor. 

+╗  
+╝

Malice sighed, a shiver running through its entire body. Alia shook, her eyes momentarily breaking free of their glazed look to stare down at the abomination wrapped around her. Then, the look went back to her eyes, causing her to smile slightly, content with everything.

_I'm not a bitch… I'm not a bastard… you have to have a _gender _to be either_.

+╗  
+╝

X watched the young girl go running off, so sure of herself. He trailed after her, slower, checking to make sure he didn't land on a weak piece of wood and go crashing through it to the next floor.

She ran into a wide-open room. Sighing aggravatedly, he walked in after her, only to stop and stare. 

Alia was sitting on a chair. On her lap was a man wearing a white kimono, grinning at both of them.

"X, Caroline." He nodded, giving them a gesture of welcome. Alia smiled slightly, looking all her part of the cracked-out girlfriend. "So nice that you could come…"

Caroline growled, her grip on the camera in her hands tightening. "Malice? I thought you were a woman… would make sense, though. A-" X winced at what she called him- "like you wouldn't _have_ a gender."

He laughed, throwing his head back. "Touché. Correct, I have no gender… though I tend to appear opposite of my victims." He grinned again, all teeth showing. "And this time my victim happens to be this lovely lady underneath me."

X could feel his 'blood' draining from his face. His knees suddenly felt rubbery and, with great effort, he forced himself to stay standing. Often he had been put into danger, his life had been threatened, but never Alia's. He couldn't bear the thought oh anything happening to her. 

And yet, now she was in danger. And there was nothing he could do to help her…


	13. Darkness Falls: Chapter 12: Torn

Darkness Falls - Chapter 12: Torn

****

"Alia!" X's screamed pulled Caroline out of her daze. Jerking her head back, she saw him run towards Malice and the unconscious girl. It took her a moment to figure out what he was going to do, and when she did, she screamed as well.

Ignoring the little wise voice in the back of her mind that was telling her that this was going to hurt, she tackled X, wrapping her arms around his knees and slammed hard into the ground, teeth rattling. "You stupid, silly, and stupid man!" she snapped, hissing. Her elbows and knees had scrapped across the ground, and blood slowly seeped from the wounds. "Do you know what you just nearly did?"

"I have to help Alia," he responded, squirming under her. She moved and sat on his back, preventing him from doing anything. "She trapped with that… that thing! That man!" Brining his hands up underneath himself, X shoved upwards, trying to dislodge the girl. "I need to go help Alli!"

"Getting yourself killed is not going to help your girlfriend," Caroline growled back, pressing her knee between his shoulder blades. With a sigh he gave up, fuming to himself. _You stupid little bastard, would you just calm down?!_ "That thing, that guy, that person that's on her is _not _normal. It's Malice." He shifted under her. "You do that, and you'll not only kill Alia, you'll kill yourself."

The floor creaked ominously under them, causing her to bite her lower lip in worry. _This place just seems too much like that place in my dreams…_

"How?!" Rolling over quickly, X shoved Caroline off of him, jamming his foot into her stomach. "How can it hurt me?!" 

"That's what had you imprisoned to begin with." Caroline clutched her stomach, struggling to breathe and gritting her teeth. "Don't you get that? If you try to safe her, you'll end up killing her?" It was getting easier to breath now, though not by much. The pain from X's foot impacting with her stomach still hadn't gone completely away.

He pulled himself to his feet and regarded her coolly. "Why should I believe you?" he demanded, fighting against the strong urge to kick her in the ribs. "Maybe you just… just want Alia dead!"

"Why would I want that?!"

+╗  
+╝

Malice laughed gleefully, stroking Alia's cheek. _Look at them fight… Maybe they'll kill themselves without me having to do anything._

Alia stirred, groaning, her eyes fluttering open. Wincing, the film cleared from them, allowing her to actually see what was happening in front of her. With a gasp, her eyes widened even more. Before she could scream, however, Malice killed her firmly, covering her mouth and muffling any noise she would or could make. 

+╗  
+╝

Grabbing his arm, Caroline pulled X back, desperate. "X, please, if you do something stupid, you'll both die, okay? Just stop! I can help her!"

With a violent shove, X pushed her away, snarling. "I'm not going to just let Alli be harmed by tha-" He was cut off by an odd noise coming from where Alia and Malice were. Twisting his head, he saw it kissing her, and the panicked look in her eye. 

_You little bastard, I'm going to rip your head off…_

+╗  
+╝

_What's going on?!_ Alia's mind screaming as she tried to shove the man off of her. Her hand, however, simply went through his body, giving her nothing to shove against. Malice laughed, stroking her hair and pulling away. 

"Child, we don't need to get so friendly so fast. Believe me, we'll have plenty of time later to get to know each other."

"Sick pig!"

"Don't worry. I don't want you… just yet."

+╗  
+╝

"You bastard!" Ignoring Caroline's please and worries, X charged at the man, Malice, intent on killing something. He was touching Alia in a way that no one should ever touch her without her consent, and he was going to die for that. It was simple. Her was going to die in a horrible, blooding manner. No one was-

"Stop. If you value her life, that is. If you don't, then, by all means…" A cruel smile played over the man's lips. "By all means then, continue. Which is it?"

"Please, X, don't do anything!" Caroline begged, running up to him. The camera, which had slipped from her grasp when she had tackled her, laid on the ground, forgotten. _If I don't stop X now, he's going to us all killed._

And then she stepped on a weak floor board.

It was just like her dream, all over again. Something reached out to grab her and pulled her back up, but she fell through anyways, shards and splinters dragging, ripping, and slashing at her body. She landed hard, her legs crumbling underneath her. Screaming, she brought her arms up to protect her face, but her head slammed back against something, knocking her out.

+╗  
+╝

X was only vaguely aware of what had happened to Caroline in a distant way. His only focused thoughts were of Alia and Malice. More specifically, how to get Alia from Malice, and the most painful way to kill him.

He never did once question the fact that, in the span of fifteen minutes, he had gone from pacifist to warmonger.

+╗  
+╝

Malice didn't wait for X to figure it out. The girl was gone and was separated from her camera. Even if X did figure out that the camera was the key, he would never be able to work it. The Hinasaki blood didn't run through his veins, like it ran through Caroline's.

Smiling again, it flicked its wrist out, grabbing onto his soul. Yanking back, it brought it with him, leaving the useless husk of a body to fall onto the floor with a resounding 'thud'. Alia screamed, but before the noise could irritate it, it grabbed at her soul too, neatly removing it from her body.

Laughing, it rose, carrying the souls with it. All was done. The girl was lost, without her camera. The other one, Zero? He was its. He never tried to fight. The only wild card was those three spirits…

But it doubted they would come back.

All was done. And all was lost. 


	14. Darkness Falls: Chapter 13: Souls

Darkness Falls - Chapter 13: Souls

****

Groaning, Caroline sat up, brushing dust and spider webs from her face. _Where am I_, she thought, confused. For a moment, she couldn't remember what has happened, or how she had gotten here. Her head spun as she tried to stand and, once completely that simple task, Caroline felt herself sway back and forth.

"You're finally awake. Here I've been, waking the dead, and you haven't even stirred."

"Huh?" Caroline blinked, her confusion increasing as her eyes adjusted to the lack of lightly. The speaker formed in front of her, and the familiar voice helped it click. "Iris?"

The ghost girl nodded, smiling. "Yes, it's me. Tanya and Mafuyu are with me, too."

The first name Caroline knew, and she gave a small smile to the young child, reminding herself that she needed to ask her later how she got here. _After all, didn't she saw that she needed to die to help X?_ The second man, who was wearing a white jacket and had short black hair, was completely unfamiliar. "Who…?"

"Didn't your mother teach you anything about your family history?" he asked teasingly, smiling himself.

"Of course she did," Caroline shot back hotly. "About the camera, and the mansion, and how my grandmother came here after her broth…." Realization slowly dawned over her. "… Mafuyu? You're Miku's elder brother, the one who stayed with Kirie, aren't you?"

"None other than," Mafuyu responded, giving her a small bow. "And I'm also Miku's _only_ brother. Just like her, in looks and in thought."

Before Caroline could respond to that, Iris interrupted them both. "Brother sister fights can happen later, you two. Right now we need to figure out how to deal with Malice."

"It's stronger than the last time it was released, I think. I couldn't even protect him."

All eyes turned to Tanya, who was currently staring at the ground. "It's not your fault sweety," Iris said softly, kneeling down and stroking her hair. "You did your best to help him. We really couldn't have asked for more."

"Who? X?" Once again, Caroline was confused. _If I had a dollar for everytime this happened…_ "Did something happen to X? I mean, something else happen?"

"Yes, he… Malice broke through my protection. And it got to the girl, too." Tears began to well up in Tanya's eyes, glowing an eerie silver-ish shade. Caroline bit her lower lip, wondering how to tactfully phrase her next question.

"… I thought you died when you were giving your soul to X."

Iris shot her a dirty look, making Caroline feel like kicking herself. _Tactful. Veeery nice._

Tanya shook her head, but it was Mafuyu who answered for her. "What she did was try and protect his soul, his consciousness. She didn't really 'die', just gave all her energy to him for an undisclosed amount of time." He sighed. "But it's far stronger than any of us thought."

Iris frowned, grabbing at a chunk of her own long, chestnut hair, and yanked. "This is so stupid! And frustrating!" Closing her eyes, she dropped her hands to her sides, clenching them into fists. "Why can't we prevent this? We should have been able to. _We should have been watching!_"

"Could someone please explain this to me?" Caroline asked after a long paused. Iris was too busy fuming to pay attention to her, and Tanya was lost in her own world, so it was Mafuyu who answered her question.

"Just like Miku, always questioning… okay, now where to start…"

+╗  
+╝

Zero paced over the floor, listening to the incessant, annoying creaking of the floorboards. A small smile flickered across his lips as he stared at the dead body, lying only a few feet away from him. True, Cain had already been dead when Zero stumbled across his body, but it had been satisfying ripping him apart anyways. 

"Feeling rather violent today, I see."

Whirling around, Zero drew his sabre, intent on mauling whoever it was that had snuck up on him. When no one was there, and nothing greeted him safe for the tittering coming from above his head, he scowled. 

"You're too tense. Calm down, put that stick away, and talk to me like a civilized person would."

Still scowling, Zero dropped his sabre and crossed his arms. "Malice, you goddamned female, would you just show yourself instead of hiding up in the rafters where I can neither see you nor get to you?"

The girl laughed again, a light, tilting noise as she came down and landed gracefully in front of him, hair settling neatly around her shoulders. "Why Zero, you seemed so unenthused by the thought of speaking with the great and mighty me. Why so?"

"Why should I be happy to see you?" he spat at her, glaring.

"I have some interesting news…"

+╗  
+╝

"Reploids don't exactly have souls. You see…" Mafuyu paused, struggling to find some decent way to explain it. "They have a consciousness. Some of the do, at any rate. And that's all a soul is, really. Understand?" Caroline nodded, but judging from her blank stare, it was obvious that she didn't.

He sighed. "Okay, let's start again…

"A soul isn't what everyone makes it out to be. It's not some ultra sacred and holy mystical thing, though it is rather important. It's simply the gathering of your awareness, of your consciousness." 

"So how come all reploids don't have one?" Caroline questioned, raising an eyebrow. "And how come Iris, Alia, X, and Zero have, had one? And why do humans have them?"

"I can answer the human part," Tanya said quietly, leaning against Mafuyu. Smiling, he patted her shoulder. _She's so young, and she's trying to deal with all of this…_ "Human's don't have everything 'programmed' into them at birth. Since there is a real chance of growth and of change, their minds change and shift, creating their awareness as they get older. In sense, their souls."

"Very good," Mafuyu said, smiling once more. "Now, as for the reploid part… um…"

"Let me explain this," Iris offered. He immediately accepted, greatly relieved that he wasn't stuck trying to explain something like that.

"After a reploid goes through a… difficult experience, their awareness is expanded beyond that of their programming. Once that happens, the boundaries disappear, allowing for the to 'grow', in a sense, creating a 'soul'."

"And that means what in English?" Was all Caroline could say to that. "I kinda sorta lost you… sorry. I mean, why you four?"

Iris grew silent, and for a moment, Mafuyu was afraid that she was going to refuse to answer the question. Before he could say anything, however, she began to talk, quietly at first.

"When… when Zero killed my brother, I felt… torn. I couldn't see the world in black and white anymore, and I couldn't understand anything that was happening to me. Zero used to be a maverick, but he lost his memory and joined the hunters. When he regained his lost memories, and finally came to terms with the fact that he was… evil… he couldn't easily distinguish right from wrong, either. X… when Zero died… X didn't know which was worst: The Mavericks or the Hunters. And everyday, Alia has to watch X nearly die trying to save people that hate him. It causes you to wonder…" She took a deep, shaky breath. "In short, we don't see things as good an evil. I can, to a point, understand the rational logic behind the mavericks. Surprisingly enough, there is one."

"I see." Frowning, Caroline bit her lower lip again. "Then I have to help them but-" Her eyes widened. "The camera! I lost the camera!" Panic began to fill her as she thought of all the horrible things that could, and would, come from that.

"Calm down," Iris snapped, rubbing her forward and muttering under her breath. "Just… Mafuyu, Tanya!" Both jumped at the sound of her barking their names. "Take Caroline to the Hell Gate. I'll meet you there, with the camera." Before anyone could say anything, she was gone, with only a faint snapping noise left from her disappearance.

"… oh what fun this is…" 


	15. Darkness Falls: Chapter 14: Descent Into...

Darkness Falls - Chapter 14: Descent Into Darkness

****

"I don't get it. What did she mean by 'we should have been watching'?"

Surprised, Mafuyu glanced back at Caroline, a look of approval on his face. "So you caught that, eh?" She nodded. He sighed.

"All ghosts have an ability to sense… sense things that happened in their surroundings. Iris and I have been here, watching over the gate along with Ki-… just, we've been watching over it." _Damnit_… he had nearly given away the fact that she was still there. He couldn't do that, not just yet. "Malice appeared out from under our noses, as the saying goes. If we had been more alert, we would have been able to prevent this but-"

Caroline interrupted him. "You can't be expected to always be paying attention. I mean, you're dead. You're supposed to be able to rest or some rot like that."

Mafuyu laughed and cast a look in Tanya's direction. The little girl seemed even more morose than before, and it sent an almost ominous chill up his spine. She didn't look back at him, completely ignorant of the world around her.

He sighed. _This isn't going to be easy, now will it?_

+╗  
+╝

"Where are they?" Zero snapped, threatening to hit Malice. The girl cringed, though in actuality he couldn't have harmed it unless it let him. 

"They'll be here _soon_, like I said," it snapped back, glaring at him. "Learn to be patient. Trust me, it'll pay off later."

Spitting on the floor, he whirled around, crossing his arms. "You better be telling the truth, or you're going to pay for this later."

_Like you could do anything to me, you bastard._

+╗  
+╝

"Down there."

Caroline stared down into the darkness, slightly afraid to continue. With no light, she could just barely make out the ladder, and it was not on the top of her list, to be climbing down a ladder in the dark into a 'Hell Hole'.

"Do I _have _to go down there?" She asked, not meaning to whine. Unfortunately, it came out as such, and she ducked her head, blushing. "Sorry."

"Don't be." Mafuyu put his hand on her shoulder, giving her a half-hearted smile. "It's not exactly an appealing place. But Iris said that she'd meet us down there with the camera. C'mon."

Sighing, Caroline lowered herself down, grabbing hold of the sides of the ladder. It creaked under her, and she carefully tested each rung before putting her full weight on it. _One's going to break under me, and I'm going to fall, and then I'm going to break my neck, and no one will find me_.

She got down the first ladder without anything too exciting happening to her. Breathing a sigh of relief, she realized that Tanya and Mafuyu were already down there. Cringing, she lowered herself down the second ladder.

And then it happened.

Something cut the rung out from under Caroline's. Biting back a scream, she struggled to hold herself up, but her arms soon gave out, sending her tumbling to the ground below.

"Ow…" she groaned, rubbing her head. "What happened?"

"_I _happened."


	16. Darkness Falls: Chapter 15: Instability

Darkness Falls - Chapter 15: Instability

****

Caroline gasped when she saw the face of her attacker. It was Zero. But no longer the Zero that she had known.

His face was twisted into a demonic grin, his sabre held, ignited, in his left hand, right hand holding a crushed and mangled piece of wood. _That was part of the ladder, _she thought, her last fully coherent thought for a long time.

He struck at her, wood connecting harshly with the side of her head, causing her to cry out in pain and curl into the fetal position. Red, thick, red blood leaked between the fingers she had pressed up against the wound, matting down her hair and coating her hand.

He was trying to kill her. The mother-fucker was trying to kill her.

Caroline jerked her head up and shoved herself to the side just in time. With a feral yell, Zero had slashed down with his sabre and destroyed the rest of the ladder, swearing loudly at the fact that he had _missed_, that he hadn't killed her with that blow. That attack had been meant for her head, her body. Trying to ignore the fact of that for the moment, she forced herself to her feet to run, to find some where to go.

The room they were in, however, was small, circular, with a roped-off fire pit in the center. Ducking under the rope on one side and jumping over the other, Caroline began to slap the wall, praying she would find _something_, _anything_ that would help her out of here. 

She stepped down on something, and sharp, shooting, burning pains wrapped around her foot, forcing her to bite down hard on her lower lip to keep from crying out. Not that Zero didn't already know where she was, but what was the point of advertising it. Reaching down, she yanked at the source of her torture and pulled it up, sending fresh waves of pain up and down her leg.

It was a mask. A goddamned eye-fucking-mask. Twin spikes protruded _backwards_ from the eye-holes, obviously meant to gouge the eyes out of whoever wore it.

That, or stab holes into their feet.

"You're gona die now!"

Caroline hadn't meant to do it. It was all purely reflex, reflexes and instincts that all humans had, though most never needed to use them. Hearing the crazed man come charging up behind her, she whipped around, slashing out with the mask. With the spikes.

Zero howled in pain as the one spike caught his left cheek, biting and tearing away at the pseudo-flesh covering it. The other spike buried itself deep into his eye, staying there.

From his fingers the sabre slipped, falling and clattering onto the dirt floor. He never noticed. The pain was too much to bear. 

Caroline backed away from his, terror and utter disgust clawing at her. She had just _ripped his eye out. Ripped his face open_. So intent was she on that fact that she never even noticed that she had backed through the wall.

There had been a door behind her. An open door. Unconsciously letting out a sigh of relief, she turned and ran as best she could, right foot slipping and stumbling as each step sent a fresh throb of pain through her, blood erasing all traction. Run, slip, run, slip, run, slip, run, slip… The thought became automatic, an insipid, mesmerizing thought. The pain almost seemed to fade as she ran, the thought a focus point. Just focus on _that_, not on the _pain_, not on what she had _done_.

The camera. God-fucking-damnit, she had lost the camera again. For a moment, she slowed her pace, tempted to go back and get it. She had stopped _him_ once before, she could do it again. Claw his other eye out, like that mask was meant for…

It felt like fire had engulfed her foot. Biting back another scream of pain, Caroline ran again, ran and ignored everything, even where she was going.

She couldn't see; she was blind right now. Blind blind blind blindblindblindblind-

Get a hold of yourself!

Shaking her head, she tried to concentrate on the task at hand. The task… she needed the camera. But she couldn't get it, no. No no no… Mafuyu and Tanya were supposed to help her. But where-

"Wait a second." Caroline actually stopped this time; her heart pounding in her chest and her breath coming out ragged, ripping at her throat. She _didn't_ have the camera, Iris did. Why did she think that? Why was she so sure that she was the one with it?

"Oh god…" The words came out more like a moan than anything, her knees collapsing beneath her, jarring her hard against the ground. Something wrapped tightly around her throat, around her wrists, around her ankles, wrapping and pulling, and, with a sickening 'hiss', the sent of burned flesh filled the air, the pressure gone. With even looking, she knew that her wounds, her marks were more prominent now.

Oh god oh god oh god

"Calm _down!_" Her hoarse voice filled the room, high pitched and panicked. Eyes widening, she pulled herself to her feet, realizing the folly of what she had just done.

Zero might have been injured, might have been blinded in one eye, but he was still _out there_. That meant he could _hear_ her. That meant he could _find_ her.

Oh god oh god oh god

She was now limping, foot dragging along the ground, pains coming with every bump, every rock she found. There was no wall on either side, only a sharp drop. Accidentally, she kicked a stone down there. She never heard it hit the bottom.

She heard rope though. Rope grinding, grinding, grinding against something, against something, against _someone_. Rope grinding, burning against someone's _skin_, someone's _throat_. 

"If I had listened to my mom…" Licking her lips, Caroline grinned crazily. "If I had, I wouldn't be here. They're evil; they'll steal your soul. If I had listened, I wouldn't be here."

But she had. She couldn't change that.

Run. Run, limp. Run, limp, grind. Run, limp, grind. 

And then there was no place for her to go. She was in another large, circular room. She could tell that by the hallowed echoes all around her. Groaning her defeat, she sank to her knees, resisting the incredibly tempting urge to burst into tears.

That wouldn't help anyone. And that wouldn't help her.

Caroline wasn't sure how long she sat there, staring down at her hands, at the darkness that surrounded them. 

Long enough for Zero to quit screaming about his eye and come after her.

It was like letting a bull into a china shop, she realized when she reflected on it later. He had his sabre, and in the harsh, pale green light, she could see the blood oozing from his eye, and the flesh hanging off his face at odd angles. One of the spikes, the one she had jammed into his cheek, was still there, most likely stuck in his bone, or the metal bone-like structure. 

Seeing her, he charged forward, sabre held high, ready to slice her head clean off her shoulders. Shoving herself backwards, Caroline pulled herself to her feet and ducked underneath his arm, running behind him, slipping on her own blood, and falling forward, sliding and skinning her knees and elbows. Covering her head with her hands, she squeezed her eyes shut, preparing the blow to her head, neck, back, somewhere, the blow that would kill her.

It never came. 

Cautiously opening her eyes and raising her head, she flipped herself over and looked at Zero, trying to figure out what he was doing.

The sabre was still in his hands, but he wasn't paying any attention to it. It hung limply, his fingers barely still gripping it. He was staring up at something, a horrified expression on his face. Looking up, Caroline gasped, catching sight of what he saw.

Alia, X, Tanya, and Mafuyu were all literally stuck into the wall, their upper bodies and shoulders showing through, heads rolling around limply.

Iris was there, too.


	17. Darkness Falls: Chapter 16: Kirie

Darkness Falls - Chapter 16: Kirie

**** __

Malice, why do you do this? Why do you try and torture these people?

They never did anything to you; I never did anything to you. I'm sorry… I pity you for you pain, but you don't want pity.

You want pain. And you want to give pain.

Malice, why?

Why?

+╗  
+╝

"Iris?" The word came out as a whisper and the sabre finally fell from his limp fingers, landing with a resounding clatter, the light going out. But still, he could see her; her image burned into his mind.

Iris, imbedded in the wall, hanging limply, dead. Never mind the fact that she was already dead, he might have been able to save her. Instead, he let that girl convince him that Caroline was the problem, that Caroline was who he should have been focusing on, and not Iris. He had tried to kill her, when she had done nothing wrong.

"Iris?" Taking a step forward, Zero reached out with his arms, hoping and fearing that his hands would brush against the dead or unconscious reploid. "Iris?" For a third time the word came from his mouth, a soft, plaintive cry. "Iris…"

"If you really care about her, you'd quit whining," Caroline snapped, walking up behind him. Her boots clicked against the ground, quick, sure footsteps. "You'd find a way to release her spirit. She's dead, you know. You can't bring her back to life, not fully."

"What do you know?" Zero didn't mean it, but the words came out harsh. "How do you know that I can't bring her back to life? She's appeared here… maybe I can… I'll find away…"

"Because it's been done before!" An agitated edge was in her voice; Caroline was struggling not to blow up on him. "I understand now… a girl, she once became evil… she was under the influence of Malice, the force that's been harassing us here. When she was freed, though, she was brought back to life. And her life from then on was tortured and never ending. A half-life, really. Do you want that for Iris?"

Zero stayed silent for a moment, thinking about what she had just said. If Iris was brought back to life… it would be a half-life… torture… did he want that for her…

"It doesn't matter. She's going to die, going to be trapped here forever."

Caroline gasped and took a step back, her foot dragging across stray pebbles and scattering them. Zero blinked and turned slightly, staring at the coalescing form in front of him.

+╗  
+╝

_Malice, it is not your place to choose when, where, or even why these people die. Don't you see? This is not your place…_

I can't let you do this anymore. I will stop you. I did it once before; I'll do it again.

You can't stop me.

+╗  
+╝

The form took shape, first trying to become a girl, a young girl around the age of sixteen, then a man. Finally, it settled on both, a strange mixture of feminine and masculine features.

It really wasn't pretty. 

Wrinkling her nose, Caroline glared at Malice, wishing she had the camera. _It's kinda funny, almost like something from a video game… I'm being dependent on a _camera_. A flippin'_ camera. Smiling slightly, she resisted the strong urge to laugh.

There was something very wrong with the situation. Very wrong. 

Malice growled, an odd noise that seemed more like a combination of two voices than just one, an alto female, and a bass male.

_That's really just screwed up._

"I don't have time to deal with you," it spat, shaking its head. "She's coming, and when she does… I don't have time to deal with you." A twisted smile spread across its face. "Come here, so I can take your souls and be done with you."

Caroline opened her mouth to respond; Zero opened his mouth to respond. Nothing came out. Nothing needed to come out.

"Malice…"

"Kirie!"


	18. Darkness Falls: Chapter 17: Holy Mirror

Darkness Falls – Chapter 17: Holy Mirror

The woman stood in front of all three of them, a pale ethereal light seeming to bathe her. Long black hair flowed down her back, contrasting with the simple white kimono she wore.  Torn pieces of rope hung from her wrists, and a thick black line marred her neck.

After a moment, Zero realized that it was from rope burn. And the ones around her wrists… it was almost like what Caroline was talking about. But that would mean that Caroline wasn't making it up, that she wasn't being crazy. That there really was something in her dreams. That he had been wrong for doubting her, for hating her. For believing Malice.

That couldn't be true, could it? Because if it was, that meant that everything, everything he had believed and had been told, everything was a lie…?

"Kirie…!" Malice hissed the word, its eyes widen, the pupils dilating to pinpricks. "What… what are you doing here?"

"I'm stopping you. I can't let you do this again, not to them, not to anyone! I can't restore life to those you've already taken but… but I can save them." The woman, Kirie, glared at it, hands balled into fists. "You're going back where you belong!"

Malice hissed and rolled back into itself. "You can't… I won't let you!" Twisting itself, it lunged towards the girl, hands and nails curling into claws, teeth growing and extending into fangs. Shrieking loudly, it was about to tear her apart-

"Mafuyu!" The man, ghost, had pulled himself free of his prison of being trapped in the wall. Seeing Kirie in trouble he had jumped in front of her, taking the brunt of the attack at the last second. "No, not again… Mafuyu…"

Malice's claws sank into Mafuyu's shoulders, shoving him back against Kirie and sending them both tumbling to the ground. "Caroline," he groaned, "Caroline, fix this! It's up to you!"

+╗  
+╝ 

Caroline was confused, to say the least. She didn't understand any of what was going on. The it-thing was Malice, she knew that. And she knew who the people were, the ones that were trapped… but who was this woman? And how did Malice know her? Was she important?

The name Kirie sounded familiar, so familiar to her. Her mother, Kiri… Close, but not the same. Grandmother Miku, her great uncle Mafuyu. He had been lost in a mansion, lost when Miku had tried to find him. But she never came back with him.

Legends, stories about her family. None of it made sense, but all of it was connected. She knew it. That was why it was up to her, it was in her blood. 

"The camera… the camera pieces were lost, but that wasn't important…" The words seemed to come of their own bidding. Musing out loud, Caroline looked up at Zero, meeting his own confused gaze. "Because it wasn't the camera. It was… the… Mirror… The Mirror!" 

Turning towards where Iris was, Caroline stretched up as high as she could. Her fingers barely touched the hanging strands of hair but, throwing all logic to the wind, she wrapped them around her hand and gave a yank.

_Huh, looks like I actually can really touch the ghosts._

The brunette stirred, groaning. Getting a firmer grip, Caroline yanked again, harder. This time the reploid ghost's eyes snapped out, a flash of pain momentarily crossing her face. "What… where am I?" 

"No time for that. Where's the camera? Did you get the camera?" Iris looked at her oddly, as if the questions she was asking didn't make any sense and there was no reason for her to respond. "Damnit Iris, where is the camera?!"

"…Malice took it."

+╗  
+╝

It was so odd. He had come here originally to find out what had happened to his mentor. And in the end, even though his sister had pleaded with him to go with her, Mafuyu had stayed. Stayed to be with the girl, the woman who needed him, Kirie. 

He had needed to protect her from herself, to keep her from lashing out again at the world around her. It wasn't fair, the situation that she was thrown into, but she needed to do the best she could, no matter how much she hated it. 

But in the end he had failed. They both had failed. All of them had failed. Iris was the only one who had paid any attention to the signs and they ignored her because she wasn't a 'real' ghost. She was from the soul of a reploid. And she was the one who was going to pay the highest price for everything.

Mafuyu knew what needed to happen. All of them knew, even Caroline, though she didn't understand it. Though soon she would.

The gate to hell was sealed off by the one who suffered the most. The Rope Shrine Maidens, Kirie, and now… 

Iris.

+╗  
+╝

"Malice has it?!" A feeling of hopelessness washed over Caroline. "What are we supposed to do? We can't just take it from Malice! We're screwed!"

"Why do you need the camera?" Working slowly, Iris was slowly pulling herself out of the wall. She was almost all the way out; one leg was still stuck. Growling under her breath, she grabbed and yanked, sending herself tumbling back onto the floor. "I don't get why the Laws of Physics work on ghosts," she mumbled.

"That doesn't matter!"

"Geeze, all right, all right."  Scowling, Iris pulled herself to her feet. "What do you want? Why do you need the camera?"

"I don't. I need the piece of the Mirror inside of it."

"Why didn't you say so?" Grinning, the ghost pulled a shining shard out from her pocket. "I saved it just in case of an emergency like this… this was what made the camera work, anyways. This inserted into any old camera would have had the same affects. I think. Though there is all that talk about the Camera Obscura-"

"Right right, yeah, okay, enough of that." Snatching the Mirror piece from Iris' hand, Caroline turned and ran back to the center of the room.

+╗  
+╝

Nothing made sense. The ghosts, the woman, that man, the girl… it was all started to blur together in Zero's mind. The pain from his eye and cheek was slowly becoming agonizing, and the light in the room only came from what was emanated from the ghosts themselves now that his sabre had been put out. 

There were footsteps, human footsteps, and by squinting he could barely see Caroline's shape heading towards the middle. There was a small shrine set up there; what could she want with it? Something was glowing in her hand… Malice was shrieking again, and someone was shouting something… whatever was glowing became brighter, brighter, until he couldn't see…

+╗  
+╝

_The Holy Mirror has been restored._

_I now need to perform my duty. _


	19. Darkness Falls: Chapter 18: Lovelorn Lov...

Darkness Falls: Chapter 18: Lovelorn Lovers Lost Part Two

The light seemed to pour into every crevice in the circular room, blinding all occupants. Hissing and screaming, Malice tried to outrun the light, tried to find somewhere to hide, but it wasn't fast enough. It couldn't evade the inevitable and as soon as a stray beam touched it, it disappeared in a burst of oily black smoke.

Coughing and choking, Caroline fell to her knees, the uneven surface on the room digging into her knees. A strange feeling washed over her, like someone touching her body and taking something awful away from her. She wanted to cry out but everything suddenly seemed too much: The nightmares, the deaths, everything that she had just gone. Letting out a small groan, she collapsed completely onto the ground, sprawled out in an undignified heap.

+╗

+╝

His eyes slowly getting used to everything, Zero stared intently at the center of the room. Something had happened there and, though he tried to ignore it, he knew that something bad was about to happen. Not necessarily bad though, just… unpleasant? 

Opening his mouth to call out to someone, anyone, Zero hissed and swore at the pain that cut through his jaw. Grabbing hold of the spike, he pulled and with a sickening sucking and crunching noise, the offending object was free and flying through the air. Black blood ran down the side of his face, dripping slowly into his mouth. Spitting it out, he fought back the urge to vomit.

The light slowly faded to a faint glow that illuminated the entire room. Caroline was on the floor, most likely unconscious. There was no sign of any of the other ghosts. Including, except…

"Zero."

Afraid to look, Zero froze, staring at Caroline. That was Iris' voice. He didn't want to see her, didn't want to have to face her. Not after what he had done. He never tried to do anything wrong, but everything turned out that way. He had killed her. Iris. And he had almost killed Caroline.

"Zero, look at me. I don't have much time."

Resigning himself to his fate, Zero turned. And gasped. 

Iris was standing at the entrance to some tunnel, at some gate. Twin poles rose on either side of her and from them ropes came down, tied to her wrists. At the bottom were more ropes, attached to her ankles. And the worse was the rope tied around her neck, the end of it dangling down, touching the ground. "Iris!"

She smiled wanly, strands of brown hair falling forward into her face. Automatically she tried to reach up to move the hair but the ropes prevented her from doing so. "Hello Zero. I… huh. This is different, isn't it?" Her rainbow-colored dress began to fade, a long white kimono taking its place. "I bet you never thought you'd ever see me again."  

"Iris…" It seemed to be the only thing he could say. Taking a few clumsy steps towards her, Zero reached out to touch her, but his hand met only air. "Iris?"

She sighed. "I'm not alive. I'm dead Zero. You know that, you killed me. I just… I don't have much time left. You need to get X, Alia, and Caroline out of here. This place isn't safe anymore and you four can't die. You have to rebuild, and you have to remember."

"Iris-"

"Kirie can't do it any longer, and I needed to take over for her. I just wanted to say goodbye… and I wanted to tell you that I love you. And that I don't blame you for what you did. I was wrong for attacking you. You only did what you had to."

Zero could only stare, shocked. "No… Iris-"

"Don't you see?" Tears streamed down her face. "Malice came to me then. I was vulnerable and he told me to kill you, to avenge my brother through violence. I was wrong Zero! Please, forgive me!"

"… I forgive you…"

Turning, he ran and fled.

+╗

+╝

There was a throbbing pain in his head. That's all X could think about as he slowly came to, eyes opening and staring up into the filmy grey. Sitting up, he groaned and placed a hand on his head. "Where am I? What happened?"

"X?" Looking up, X searched for the sound of the voice. It had sounded like… there! Pulling himself to his feet, he limped over to Alia.

"Yeah, it's me." Holding his hand out X helped the blond woman to her feet. "Are you okay? That's one nasty looking cut." Gently he ran his finger across her forehead, drawing back when she shuddered at the contact.

"I'm fine. Just terribly confused. I feel like something important just happened but I can't remember any of it. I don't know where I am… X…" Alia hugged him tightly, resting her head on his shoulder. "I'm confused. And I'm scared."

"You don't have time to be either! Move it or die!"

Startled, both X and Alia jumped and turned to see Zero and Caroline running towards them. Zero with half of his face missing and Caroline limping, a trail of blood left on the ground wherever she put her right foot. "Holy sweet mother Mary, what happened to you?"

Both of them exchanged a look. "… You don't… remember?"

X frowned and gently pried Alia off of him. "No. I don't remember and neither does Alia. We're not going anywhere unt-"

The entire room, entire building began to shake. Caught off guard X toppled over backwards, slamming into Alia's leg and causing her to fall on top of him. Vaguely he noticed how Zero and Caroline managed to stay standing, holding onto each other. "Look, we don't have time! This place is going to be destroyed and we can't be in it when that happens! Iris can't hold it off for much longer!"

Something about that statement made sense but really, it didn't. It couldn't. How was Iris doing anything? She was dead, wasn't she? Helping Alia up again, X followed Caroline and Zero out of the building.

+╗

+╝

The sky was bright and cheery when they got outside, something that surprised Alia. It seemed to her that they had spent a long long time down there – shouldn't it be night already? Or maybe night had come, maybe darkness had fallen, but now it was being lifted again. Daybreak.

Something had been taken from her. A memory. X swore that he had been unconscious the entire time, which was why he didn't remember anything, but Alia knew better. Caroline and Zero did too, judging from their expressions, but they didn't say anything.

Something had happened in there. In that place. Something that she knew she needed to remember, and she would remember it when the time came. But until then she needed to forget and heal.

Darkness fell, and now darkness was lifted.


	20. Darkness Falls: Epilogue

Darkness Falls: Epilogue 

_"They don't remember anything."_

_Zero glanced over at the auburn haired girl and shrugged. "That's a good thing, isn't it? Who would want to remember something like that?"_

_"No one. But we need to remember. We have to prevent it from every happening again." Caroline sighed. "Just look at this. What if we forget and time passes and again this occurs?"_

_They were standing in front of the remains of the old Hunter Headquarters. It had taken over a month to clean the area, but finally most of the debris from the fallen building had been moved, and the entrance to the underground tunnel had been blocked. No one was quite sure why Zero had insisted that was done, but no one felt like arguing with the Crimson hunter. _

_"We won't forget."_

_"But they don't remember."_

_"No… X doesn't. But Alia does, though she's trying to deny it."_

_Caroline thought about this for a moment and nodded. "Yes… Malice affected her. Probably more deeply than either of us. But what good could come of that?"_

_"Iris was touched by Malice… And now Alia is… Kirie was also touched by Malice."_

_There was an unspoken thought between them, one neither would voice. The wind picked it up and carried it away, leaving them standing together in silence. _


End file.
